Peshawar , Pakistan -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The Pakistani Taliban will avenge the group 's No. 2 leader , who was slain Wednesday in a drone strike , and wo n't listen to government peace initiatives , a spokesman said Thursday .

Ehsanullah Ehsan , the group 's spokesman , told CNN the group holds the Pakistani government responsible for the death of Wali-Ur Rehman Mehsud .

Rehman is one of seven people slain when a drone struck a target near the town of Miranshah , according to a local official and an intelligence official . The target is in the North Waziristan district of Pakistan 's tribal region -- a rugged area with a significant population of militant groups .

The Pakistani Taliban will not accept any offer from the government for a peace dialogue , Ehsan said . Nawaz Sharif , the Pakistani politician who is expected to serve as the next prime minister , has broached the issue of engaging in peace talks with the Pakistani Taliban .

Militants in the tribal region , including the Pakistani Taliban , long have been conducting an insurgency against the Pakistani government .

Rehman -- now buried in a secret North Waziristan location , Ehsan said -- was wanted by the United States on suspicion of being involved in the December 2009 suicide bomb attack that killed seven CIA employees at Forward Operating Base Chapman in Khost , Afghanistan , according to a publication by the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center .

The publication , which described him as the Pakistan Taliban 's No. 2 leader and chief military strategist , and said he participated in cross-border attacks in Afghanistan against U.S. and NATO personnel . He was second in command to Hakimullah Mehsud .

Rehman was killed along with his close aide , Fakhar-ul-Islam , and two Uzbek nationals whose identities the sources did n't know .

The United States has long conducted drone strikes in its fight against suspected Taliban and Pakistani jihadist groups in Pakistan near the Afghan border . Before this week , the last reported drone strike in Pakistan was in mid-April . The latest strike was the first known hit since Pakistan held general elections on May 11 and since U.S. President Barack Obama announced his new counterterrorism policy last week .

White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters Wednesday that he could n't confirm reports of Rehman 's death , but he said the militant was wanted for the Khost incident and mentioned his participation in attacks . `` It 's important to note who this individual is , '' he said .

Drone strikes have become controversial and unpopular because they have killed civilians , and Pakistan has said it has `` serious concerns '' over the latest attack .

Pakistan , which describes itself as a front-line state in the fight against terrorism , said it has `` consistently maintained that the drone strikes are counterproductive , entail loss of innocent civilian lives , have human rights and humanitarian implications and violate the principles of national sovereignty , territorial integrity and international law . ''

When Obama discussed drone strikes last week in his counterterrorism address , he said they must be used with more temperance and caution . But , he said , they remain a necessary tool to take on terrorists .

CNN 's Zahir Shah Sherazi reported from Peshawar and Joe Sterling wrote and reported in Atlanta .

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Pakistani Taliban says it will reject any peace initiatives

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Rehman has been buried in a secret location

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The tribal region where he was killed in a drone strike has a strong presence of militants